Canada Border Agency Restricts Flagpoling for Canadian Residents

9 May 2018

"Flagpoling" describes the process for Canadian foreign national residents who need validate a Confirmation of Permanent Residence or a permanent resident visa by exiting Canada at a United States land border, then immediately turning around to re-enter Canada at the same land border where an officer will interview you, and grant you entry into Canada. Flagpoling is not illegal; the word flagpoling refers to making a U-turn at the border entry flagpole.

The benefit to flagpoling is that the required documentation to validate your Canadian immigration status is less than 30 minutes, versus scheduling an appointment at an IRCC office and submitting your application online, which can take weeks or months to schedule. Visas requiring validation include:

work permit

study permit

temporary resident permit

visitor document

any immigration document

Since 2017 the Canada Border Service Agency (CBSA) has begun limiting flagpoling at certain points of entry to only Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday at Ontario and Quebec's Rainbow, Queenston-Lewiston, Peace, Lacolle and St-Armand land borders. CBSA has stated that this pilot program is to manage the high volume and long waits due to flagpoling at certain land borders on the weekends.

“The refusal to process these requests at ports of entry can have a significant detrimental impact on an applicant’s ability to work or study in Canada, as well as on their health insurance coverage”

What to do if you need to validate a Confirmation of Permanent Residence or a permanent resident visa

Schedule your flagpoling trip only on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday.

Schedule a day trip to the United States so you can apply for re-entry to Canada on any day of the week, at any time of day.

Apply online or by mail for an appointment with Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada to have your visa validated, which IRCC advises could take longer than 2 months.

Consult an immigration lawyer or expert if you feel your rights are being denied and you need assistance with immigration to Canada.

Do you need help with Canada immigration? We Can Help

Evelyn Ackah is a US and Canada immigration law expert and founder and managing lawyer at Ackah Business Immigration Law. Business immigration law focuses on helping people move into new opportunities — both personally and professionally. Ackah Immigration Law helps you to navigate the complex maze of rules and regulations involved with Canadian, U.S. and international immigration law with confidence. Headquartered in Calgary and with offices in Vancouver and Toronto, Ackah Business Immigration Law provides legal immigration advice for those looking to move for work, education or personal reasons.

We provide expertise in all areas of immigration law ranging from corporate immigration to personal and family immigration matters. We provide comprehensive immigration services to clients around the world representing corporations, institutions, not for profit organizations and individual clients. As your immigration lawyers and paralegals, we provide you with timely and strategic advice relating to the constantly changing immigration laws and regulations.